Bird Banter

It;s great tio be back.  After a long hiatus to attend the birth of my first two grandchildren in Costa Rica, and then a birding trip to Colombia, the podcast is back.  On this episode Bruce LaBar (remember episode #3) and I recap our Colombia trip.  It was a terrific trip with Hillstar Nature Tours, and leader Mollee Brown and Yessenia Tapasco.   Check out my trip report on eBird where lots of photos from many of the participants are on the eBird lists.  For more photos and details see the blog post on the BirdBanter.com blog.     

As I mention in the introduction, some of my best times recording episodes for the podcast is when I just talk birding with another birder, like myself who just loves to talk birding with a fellow birder. No other agenda, just having fun.  Keith Corliss is my guest on this episode, a North Carolina birder who perfectly exemplifies a fellow birder enjoying taking an hour to chat about birding and meeting a new friend.  Enjoy See Keith's eBird profile here Keith's email is on his ebird profile. I mention several episodes I really enjoyed with other birders who have great local and regional birding experiences to share. You'll find links to those and more on my  I also mention the San Diego Birding Festival, I believe I misnamed it as the Sea and Sage Festival on the recording but here is the link.  You can find information about the Searcher 5-day pelagic with Todd McGrath and others here.   Westport Seabirds in Washington can be found here.  Thanks for listening.  Until next time, good birding and good day!

On this episode Alex and I talk about how he has enjoyed birding in Eastern Washington as a Washington State University student, after birding in the Seattle area for most of his early birding days.  We also talk about his mammal WA big year in 2022, his birding story, and more. Enjoy.  Reach Alex by text, his phone number is on his eBird profile, or by email sowersalexander1- at- gmail- dot - com  On the Birdbanter.com blog post about this episode you can find links to many of the ebird hotspots discussed and more.  Thanks for listening.  Until next time, good birding and good day!

On this episode we talk about slow birding, as Joan Straussmann writes about in her book. Slow Birding: The Art and Science of Enjoying Birds in Your Own Backyard.  Joan also talks about her work at Washington University in St. Louis, and how her teaching there has led to using birding in the area as a means of teaching students observation skills. In her book she goes into beautiful detail about places and birds she sees and visits regularly.  You can find her book anywhere books are sold. Here is a link on Buteo Books.  To see her bio at Washington University in St. Louis click here.  To read the blog post associated with this episode or to send a comment or suggestion to me use these links.  Thanks for listening. Until next time, good birding and good day!

On this episode Melissa and I talk about her new book, Dare to Bird: Exploring the Joy and Healing Power of Birds as well as her recent travels. Melissa was a guest on Episode #105 in July 2021 where you can hear more about her background and birding story.   Find her new book whereever books are sold. Here you can find it on Buteo Books.  You can read more about Melissa's experiences and the book in an article in Audubon Magazine.  As always check out the related blog post on BirdBanter.com  Until next time, good birding and good day!

I don't know many birders who may be better known by a reputational moniker than by their real name, but The Urban Birder, David Lindo, may be my first.  I had certainly heard of someone called The Urban Birder, but only looked up who this was after Diane Yorgensen-Quinn put out notice of a trip David is planning to take Diand, Faye and likely other members of our ABC Birding Club on to see the Short-eared Owls of Kikinda, Serbia this winter.  On the episode we talk about the planned trip, how he came to be known as the Urban Birder, about his various services and roles in his company, and about his approach to urban birding in general. I think you'll find it interesting.  To see more, check out the related Bird Banter blog post.  Thanks for listening, and until next time, good birding and good day!

On this episode I talk with Ezekiel Dobson, the young birder who just became the youngest Lower-48 ABA birder to see 700 species in a year on his 2024 big year.  Ezekiel talks about his big year, his birding story, the birders and birds he has seen this year, and on what's yet to come, both in the big year and the years ahead for him.   Read more on the blog post on Bird Banter.  Support Ezekiel on his Go Fund Me page. Follow Ezekiel on Instagram Until next time, good birding and good day!

On this episode Abby and I talk about the conservation efforts she is working on with Audubon Delta and the conservation of Black Skimmers and Least Terns, as well as her doctoral studies with mixed flocks in the American tropics, her birding story and stories.   You can contact Abby through Audubon Delta.  Read more about topics on this episode on the blog post on BirdBanter.com  Until next time, good birding and good day!

Matthew Bell, a Connecticut birder and travel specialist with the Connecticut Audubon Society  is my guest on this episode. Matt got passionate about birding while at Ohio State University after a trip to Costa Rica, and on getting back to Ohio helped revive the Ornighology Club there.  We talk about his work at Connecticut Audubon, his birding experiences, and birding in Connecticut.  If you have suggestions for guests you'd like to hear from, contact me here and I'll be grateful.  As always the blog post on BirdBanter.com has more links and details on topics related to this episode. Thanks for listening. Good birding and good day!

On this episode Diane Yorgason-Quinn (see Episode #20) and Larry Schwitters talk about their work with Vaux's Swifts and the Vaux Happening Project. Larry got his start in swift research hiking to and looking for Black Swifts at over 100 waterfalls (thing very remote) in Washington State (and Oregon and CA).  From there he helped preserve the Wagner Schoolhouse in Monroe, WA.  From there he continued to start the Vaux Happening Project which documents roosting Vaux's Swifts at many old chimney roosts throughout the western U.S.  and Mexico.   Enjoy. To learn more check out the associated blog post on BirdBanter.com  

On this episode I talk with Jacob Miller, a young Washington birding friend who has just completed his freshman year at Washington State University. Jacob shares his experiences as a first year university student, talks about birding in a new county and part of the state, big days and developing new birding friends, as well as starting a birding club at WSU.  Enjoy. We talk about Liam Hutcheson's WA big year, hear about it on episode #168.  To hear more about nocturnal bird calls in Washington, check out Episode #118 with Jim Danzenbaker.  Read more on the Bird Banter Podcast Blog post.  Thanks for listening. Until next time, good birding and good day!

On this episode I talk with the authors of the new identification field guide to Empidonax flycatchers and Pewees as well as the book on Myarchus flycatchers and Kingbirds, Cin-Ty Lee and Andrew Birch. We talk about their longtime birding friendship, their birding stories, and the new books.   Check out the books at your favorite book resource.  Field Guide to North American Flycatchers: Empidonax and Pewees and Kingbirds and Myiarchus. Read more and see a book review on the BirdBanter.com blog. 

Mollee Brown is my guest on this episode and we talk about her Nighthawk Agency, which provides business solutions for the birding industry.  We also talk about her work as a bird guide, her birding story, and the trip she is leading for Hillstar Nature to the the Chocó region of Colombia that I'll be taking next winter.   Check out Nighthawk Agency here. The trip to Chocó here, and The Birding Coop here.  The learn more about the topics discussed see the blog post on BirdBanter.com.   

On this episode I talk with Josh Covill, a Montana birder who leads birding tours in Montana as well as in Central and South America.  Josh was the guide on my recent trip to the Santa Marta area of Colombia, and is a fabulous birder and really nice guy. Enjoy.  Find Josh for a Montana Tour at Glacier Birding. Joshua's page at Hillstar Nature Tours.  See the blog post on BirdBanter.com for lots more related info and links.  Thanks for listening. Until next time, good birding and good day!

On this episode I talk with a relative newcomer to birding, Courtney Ellis. Courtney began birding during the pandemic, and has become a birding enthusiast and ambassador.  Check out her podcast The Thing with Feathers, as well as her soon to be released book Looking Up: A Birders Guide to Hope Through Grief. We talked about my episode #148 with Holly Merker where you can hear about Ornitherapy and the Mindful Birding Network.  To read more about the things we talked about check out the blog post on BirdBanter.com.  Thanks for listening. Until next time, good birding and good day!  

On this episode I talk with Holly Garrod, an accomplished birder, bird bander and conservationist about her work on bird banding networks with Birds Caribbean, and about the MOTUS network progress in the Caribbean.  Her energy is fabulous, and her knowledge and expertise wonderful. I think you'll enjoy hearing her story.  Check out Birds Caribbean here.  See the Caribbean Birding Trail information here.  Learn about the MOTUS network and the Caribbean MOTUS systems at these links.  Here is info on the 2023 Caribbean Global Big Day efforts.   Read more about Holly and the topics we discussed on the Bird Banter Blog Post.  Thank for listening.  Until next time, good birding and good day!

Well, after a long break for a fabulous winter trip, the podcast is back with Ed talking about his trip to Florida, Colombia and Costa Rica.  The Colombia trip was run by Hillstar Nature Tours and led by Joshus Covill. The Proaves Organization is worth checking out, and here is their article about the possible new species of antpita.  To see photos, more detailed narrative, and other cool stuff about the trip check out the Bird Banter blog post about the trip.   

On this episode I talk with Liam Hutcheson, sho just finished his record breaking Washington State big year.  We talk about his big year, highlights, misses and people.  Also about his birding story.  While talking with Liam I marveled at how interconnected our birding community is, and how helpful birders are to each other.  Pervious guests on the show who helped in one way or another with Liam's birding and his big year include: Bill Tweit episode #8 Shep Thorpe episode #9 Ryan Rodriguez episode #47 Ken Brown #2, Bruce LaBar #3 and I were with Liam on a trip in early 2023 with Jacob Miller to the southeast corner of WA to see winter specialties.  For more details check out the BirdBanter.com blog post about this episode.  Until next time, good birding!

Birding is not the first thing many think about when considering a trip to Italy, but as birders, it is always a consideration.  On this episode I talk with Marco Valtriani, a guide with the Birding In Italy group of bird guides.  As you can inagine a lot of their business is taking visitors from the U.S. and other far away countries out for a birding break from their other tourist activities in Italy.   We talk about where and when to find birds in Italy, how to best use the services of his birding tour group, the hopeful fact that the killing of birds for food has markedly diminished, the natural park system of the country, and lots more.   I also talk a bit about Christmas Bird Counts, how you can find one, and my experiences with CBCs.   Thanks for listening. As always, check out the blog associated with this episode on the Bird Banter website.   Good birding. 

On this episode I talk with Steve Hampton about his experience on the AOU Ad Hoc Committee on English names for birds, about climate change and the research on how it is affecting birds, about gulls in the Port Townsend area, his trip to Antarctica and more.  You can find more about Steve and contact him on his professional website Stephen-Carr-Hampton.com His blogs are The Cottonwood Post about birding and Memories of the People about issues related to indigenous peoples of the U.S.  Here is a link to the official recommendations of the AOU ad hoc committee on English Bird names.  We talked about so many things you may want to see more links and discussion on the Bird Banter Blog post.  Thanks for listening.   Until next time good birding and good day. 

My guest on this episode is Rachel Hudson, a Lewis County, Washington birder who is also a photographer, artist and recent college graduate.  We talk about her interest in birding as a very young child, reading and nurturing her interest in birds from age 3, through her childhood birding in Texas and to her move to Washington for college.  She has a genuine love for birds and birding that comes through clearly, and was really fun to talk with and get to know better.   She talks about the Vaux Happening project, as well as her work with her local Audubon Chapter.  You can reach out to Rachel by email   lighteningdash09 - at - yahoo - dot- com   Read more about the Vaux Happening project and other related topics at the Bird Banter blog post associated with this episode.  Until next time, good birding!

Dorian Anderson is my guest on this episode of the podcast. Dorian was a guest on one of my earliest episodes #5 in Feb. 2019, and I have been waiting it seems forever to talk with him again once his book was written and published.  After you hear from Dorian today I'm sure you'll want to read Birding Under the Influence: Cycling Across America in Search of Birds and Recovery. On the episode we talk about Pop Tech, a pretty cool concept and event that I had not heard about before. Check it out.  Here is a link to the Tammy and David McQuade episode we discuss. Here is the Biking for the Birds blog link. Here is a short You Tube done on his biking year.  Thanks for listening.  Good Birding.   

On this episode my guest is Michael Hobbs, a King County, WA based birder who has been doing weekly bird surveys at Marymoor Park in Redmond, WA for almost 30 years.  You can contact Michael at this link to the park. We talk about the experience of such regular intentional bird surveys of a single location, the benefits, both in friendships made and birding experiences of his efforts, and about his other birding interests.  County birding is also fun, and Michael is one of a handful of WA birders who have listed >150 species in all 39 of the WA counties.  He travels internationally at times for birding, and is an overall interesting guest.  Enjoy. To see more information about the episode and topics, see the blog post on the Bird Banter website.  Thanks for listening. Until next time, good birding. 

I'm guessing you know about The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, but do you know about the man who willed it to existance, the man known as "The Birdman of the Senate?"  I didn't until Will McLean Greeley, the Great-great nephew of Senator McLean, and author of a biography on Senator McLean reached out to me and we talked for the podcast.  It's a great story, and one I'm enjoying learning more about.   You can find the book on Amazon here or at the publisher's website here.  Read more about the book, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 and more on my blog post.  Thanks for listening and I hope you enjoy the book.  Until next time, good birding!  

ON this episode Frank and I talk about his PhD work on field guides and how they have influenced conservation.  To hear a video with Frank on this topic watch this You Tube.  We also talk about the recent ABA social media network called ABA Community.  Check it out. For more info about Frank and this episode visit the blog post on BirdBanter.com Until next time, good birding and good day!

On this episode we talk about John's birding story, birding in Connecticut, and his chase to see American Flamingos that were blown north by Hurricane Idalia.  We talk about why the Long Island Sound is not great for pelagic birding, but is excellent for other birds.   Read more at the BirdBanter.com blog.   Learn more about John on his eBird Profile. 

eBird is a great tool for many purposes, but there are times when a birder wants to know how to best bird a hotspot, where to park at the hotspot, are there restrooms there, and generally about birding the hotspot.  It is great to ask a local birder, but often that is not possible, and so what to do?  Now the answer is easy. Go to BirdingHotspots.org where my guests Ken Ostermiller and Adam Jackson have created an open source, crowdsourced site for birders to help each other know how to find birds at any eBird hotspot.   You can help by using the "suggest edit" feature to help flesh out the information on any hotspot.  Please get feedback to me, or contact Ken to volunteer to help as an editor for your state.   Thanks for listening. Please leave a rating and reveiw. See more on the Bird Banter Blog. Until next time, good birding and good day. 

On this episode I talk with two of the leaders of The Feminist Bird Club, Molly Adams who is the originator of the NYC chapter, and Sydney Golden Anderson who has been active in the Chicago chapter and now lives in Colorado.  I was excited to hear about the clubs work to increase diversity and be inviting to all people with an interest in birds. Their work toward this goal is inspiring to me and I hope to you.   You can find the the Feminist Bird Club NYC Chapter website here, and there find links to many of the other chapters. Follow the NYC, Chicago or Seattle clubs on Instagram.  Buy the new book The Birding for a Better World: A guide to Finding Joy and Community in Nature anywhere books are sold, available Sept 5, 2023, but you can preorder now.  I mention BirdingHotspots.org in the episode, and I encourage listeners to participate in this crowd-sourced birding tool online.  Check out the blog post associated with this episode on the Bird Banter Website.  Thanks for listening. Until next time, good birding and good day!

On this episode I talk with Greg Harrington, a Seattle, WA birder I've met several times in the field, and who had become a proficient and prolific birder in the area over a very few years.  He is always fun to meet, and was really fun to talk with on this episode.  He is a high school history teacher, and spent some of the Covid time when teaching was online teaching from the road while travelling around the U.S. exploring and birding.  You can find Greg's email on his eBird profile here.  Here is a link to A Birders Guide to Washington on the WOS website. You can buy it here.  Here is Jerry Cooper's old but IMO still fabulous:  BIRDFINDER:  A Birder's Guide to Planning North American Trips  See the blog post associated with this episode on the Bird Banter Blog for more details.  Thanks for listening. Please leave a rating and reveiw.    

On this episode Scott and I talk about his discovery of birding as a passion later in life, and about how this led to his quest to see all of the Lower-48 raptors, initially in a year, but eventually in 17 months.  Scott is also a prolific author, and we talk about his writing and his future birding plans.  His newest book:  RaptorQuest:  Chasing America's Raptors See more about the places and people we talk about on the BirdBanter.com blog.  Thanks for listening. Good birding and good day!

On Episode #155 I talk with Arkansas birder Dan Scheiman about birding in Arkansas, his birding story and creating backyard habitat by Planting for Birds.  You can see Dan's eBird profile here, and read more on The Bird Banter blog here.  I'd love to hear about birders you'd like to hear from as guests.  Reach me on the contact page or in part of an episode review.  Thanks for listening.  Good birding. 

Pelagic birding is different in many ways from birding on land.  It's fun, exhausting, and difficult, but can be really great too.  Ken Brown, my long-time birding buddy, and I have dreamed of  getting out of Hatteras N.C. with Brian Patteson for years, and finally made it happen this year. Despite difficult weather we had a great trip, and talk about that and more on this episode.  Patteson Seabirding Westport Seabirds The Science of Birds Podcast Blog post on Birdbanter.com Dynamic Soaring Video

On this episode I talk with Rebecca Heisman, author of the new book Flight Paths, and hear about the story of writing the book, more stories about the people behind the research on bird migration, and her personal and birding story.   In the introduction I talk about the migration watch scene at Dune Peninsula. Check out the eBird hotspot page here.  You can learn more about Rebecca at her website rebeccaheisman.com As always find more related info on the Bird Banter Blog post about this article.   Until next time, I hope you enjoyed migration, and good birding!

On this episode I talk with Seattle area bird----more----er Bryony Angell, who is a professional writer with many published articles related to birding. Much of her recent work is related to women in birding and the birding experience from a woman's perspective.   You can reach Bryony on her website here. Read more about Bryony, and topics discussed on the episode on the Bird Banter blog post related to this episode.  Here is a link to the article about women only birding trips we mentioned on the episode.  The Guatamalan female guides we mentioned were Claudia Avandaño who led my trip and Ana Paula Oxom is the guide leading an upcoming Guatamala trip.  Until next time, good birding and good day!  

Jim and I talk about his birding in Johnson County, Iowa as well as his birding story, which began as a youth, had a long dormant stage, and has been revived in recent years with county big years, birding around the ABA area and a reinvigorated interest in backyard nature habitat.  I think you'll enjoy hearing Dr. Kettelkamp's story. You can reach Jim on Facebook @jim.kettelkamp where you can check out his backyard habitat. Read more on the Bird Banter blog.  Thanks for listening and until next time, good birding and good day!

I put up this episode in part because it's been longer than usual since my last episode was published, and I didn't want listeners to think I had disappeared. It's a different than usual episode, without a guest. I talk about my recent getaway trip from the rainy Pacific NW, to the Florida Keys and to Costa Rica.  It was primarily a winter vacation trip, with some time dedicated to birding.  I loved the chance to enjoy Big Pine Key from the comfort of a vacation home of a friend of Marian, and I talk a bit about the birding there.  In Costa Rica I spend a few days birding in Caño Negro, and a few more with my guide Carlos Ureña in the La Fortuna area PN Quetzales.  Be sure to watch for future more typical episodes with great guests. Thanks for listening.  Until next time, good birding and good day!

On this episode I have my first guest from the Czech  Republic, Mikuláš Řimánek. I met Mik when he was a teenage Rotary Exchange student and had the chance to get out birding with Mik then.  Since then Mik has become a leader in his country in the effort to recruit more youth into birding, and his story is both inspirational and exciting for me.  I think you'll enjoy hearing Mik's story.  You can reach out to Mik on Facebook or Instagram.  You can see his eBird profile here.  As I mentioned please let me know both about successes and efforts in your area to bring more young people into our wonderful hobby and passion.  Leave info in the podcast review section, or on the BirdBanter.com contact section. Also read more about the episode and related topics on the BirdBanter.com blog here.  Until next time. Thanks for listening, and good birding and good day!

On this episode Holly Merker talks about Ornitherapy, her experiences with birding as therapy and of ways we can use birding as a means of improving our state of wellness.  She is also an extraordinarily talented and accomplished birder. You can find out lots more on the BirdBanter.com blog post about this episode.  Buy her book Ornitherapy:  For Your Mind, Body and Soul on her website.  Check out the Mindful Birding Network website here.  Please leave a rating and review on your favorite podcast app. Thanks and until next time. Good birding and good day!

After several episodes with guests who are big-time  birding listers, we change pace for this episode featuring a birder whose passion has led him to trekking, birding and supporting the communities of some of the highest elevation communities on earth, in the mountains of Nepal.  When I met David Swain on the ship on my recent Antarctica trip I know he would be really fun to talk with for the podcast.  Learn about Nepal, life in some of the highest elevation villages on earth, about trekking and birding in those areas and more. Enjoy. The Altitude Project David Swain on Facebook Read and see more on the Bird Banter Blog

I had a chance to meet Peter Kaestner on my recent Antarctica trip. On the cruise Peter gave a talk about his life passion of seeing as many species of birds as he can in the world.  He worked for the U.S. diplomatic service, lived in many "birdy" places and visited many others. He now works part-time as a birding tour guide for Rockjumper Worldwide Birding Adventures, and has seen over 9700 of the 10,933 species now on the IOC checklist.  It's an amazing story, and I hope you enjoy hearing Peter's story and stories.  As always check out the BirdBanter blog for more details. You can reach Peter by email using the address on his eBird profile.   Thanks for listening. Good birding and good day!

In 2022 Victor and Ruben Stoll, brothers and birders from Tennessee, shattered the only one year old Lower-48 U.S. big year record, seeing about 25 more species than the previous record set by Tiffany Kersten, a prior guest.  The Stoll brothers seemed to manage to have fun while often driving day and night, taking turns sleeping and driving from one birding site to the next. Hear about aligator attacks, a mouse in the food stash, rare birds and lots more. Enjoy.  Find both Ruben on Facebook and VIctor on Facebook at these hyperlinks.  Check out the blog post on BirdBanter.com for more details  Until next time, good birding and good day!

On this episode I talk with George Armistead about our trip to Antarctica, his birding story as well as his birding tour company Hillstar Nature.  George has his own podcast with Alvaro Jaramillo and Molly Brown called Lifelist: A Birding Podcast that you may want to follow also. I certainly enjoy it.  You can find George on his website at the link above.  As promised you can learn more about the highly successful rodent eradication on the South Georgia Islands, about Katabatic winds, Churchill birding, the Bird Safe Philly Project, Christmas Bird Counts and more at my blog post on the Bird Banter Website. To learn more about the importance of museums in modern science and ornithology, as well as hear from two extraordinary guests on the podcast check out: The Bird Banter Podcast #30 with Peter Wimberger  and The Bird Banter Podcast #68 with Dennis Paulson.  Until next time. Good birding and good day!  

I don't do many solo episodes but couldn't resist an episode to talk about my recent expedition cruise to the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and Antarctica.  Antarctica is such an awesome, wild, remote and special place I've long dreamed of visiting.  Well, after two years of covid postponements I finally managed the visit this November.  The ABA, Alvaro's Adventures, and Rockjumper Birding put together a ship full of birders and Quark Expeditions ran the ship, and we did it.   For lots of details on the trip, see my trip report,and for lots of photos see my Flickr Album. To hear another podcast about the trip, check out Nate Swick's podcast episode with two of the expedition guides Ted Floyd and Katinka Domen.  If all goes as planned my next episode will be a talk with one of the top guides on the trip, and fellow podcaster George Armistad.  Follow his podcst (along with Alvaro Jaramillo and Mollee Brown) Life List: A Birding Podcast.  As always check out the Bird Banter Blog for more detailed info.  Until next time, good birding and good day.

On this episode I talk with Francis Canto Jr., a birder and birding guide from Belize.  I learn a lot about Belize, birding there, and about Francisco and his work and passion for birds and birding. Enjoy.  You can find Francisco on Facebook  Here is a link to the Belize Bird Conservatory Hawk Watch Project web page.  Thanks for listening. As always read more about this episode on the Bird Banter blog.  Until next time. Good birding. 

On this episode father-son birders Mathew and Levi Radford join me to talk about their birding, birding in Oklahoma, and how birding as a father-son duo had been important in their lives.   You can find their Father and Son Birding page on Facebook here. Mathew here, and Levi here. Read more about my recent coast birding trip on the ABC Birding site here, and as always check out the BirdBanter.com blog here. 

On this episode Doug Hitchcox, a field educator with the Maine Audubon Society and one of very few birders to have found 400 species of birds in the state of Maine is my guest.  We talk about his birding story and adventures, as well as his work with Maine Audubon.  Doug is really fun to talk with, and I cannot wait to try to get together birding with him next time I go home to Maine.  You can find Doug @dhitchcox on Twitter  or contact him at Maine Audubon by email naturalist@maineaudubon.org   Here is information about the Gilsland Farm which we talk about in detail on the episode.  Here is the website for the Hog Island Audubon Camp.  As always find more at BirdBanter.com under the blog section Until next time. Good birding and good day!

On this episode I talk  with Deborah Green, the president of the Orange Audubon Society, and the chairperson of the upcoming North Shore Birding Festival on Lake Apopka, Florida.  This really a pretty cool festival as you'll hear about on the episode.   Deborah is also a birder who travels to birding festivals, and so we talk a bit about some of her favorites.  To see more about birding festivals check out the BirdBanter.com blog post associated with this episode. You can find Deborah by email at festival@orangeaudubonfl.org  Thanks for  listening, and until next time, good birding and good day!

7On this episode Alex Harper, a birder and trip leader from Las Vegas, NV talk about birding in Sin City, his company Bird Las Vegas that leads half and whole day trips individualized to his customer's needs in Las Vegas. Matt has also birded Alaska extensively, and has a great birding story. Enjoy.  Bird Las Vegas Website Check out the associated blog post on BirdBanter.com  Contact Alex through his website here. 

Backyard birding has become somewhat a national if not worldwide hobby for many during Covid times, and on this episode Tammie Poppie, creator of the website On The Feeder is my guest.  We talk about how to keep birds safer with proper feeder cleaning, bird window strikes, and overall how to enjoy the birds in your yard. As always check out the associated blog post on BirdBanter.com for more links and info.  Until next time. Good birding and good day!

On this episode Matt Goff, a Sitka birder and all around naturalist, talk about birding in Sitka, his 10+ years of doing a bi-weekly radio show on KCAW, the local radio station in Sitka, about birding and many other aspects of the natural history and environment of the Sitka area.  He also has a website SitkaNature.org where you can learn lots more.  It was really fun to hear about hyper-focused birding in his home city/borough.  Matt is a self taught naturalist, who is simply very interested in every aspect of the natural world around him. Birding is just one aspect of his love of nature and his study of his local environment.  It seems like a very healthy and wonderful focus, and one we can all admire if not emulate.   

On this episode Sarah Swanson and I talk about her new book, Best Little Book of Birds: The Oregon Coast, as well as her birding story, her prior book, birding around Portland, OR and lots more.  You can preorder Sarah's book Best Little Book of Birds: The Oregon Coast She is @Sarahlovesbirds on Instagram Be sure to check out the blog post with lost more info on BirdBanter.com Thanks for listening.  Good birding.